Just two days ago, Mitt Romney published a lengthy condemnation of the Obama administration's rescue of the American auto industry. With General Motors announcing its largest annual profit in company history this morning, the Republican presidential candidate's timing clearly could have been better.
For all of 2011, G.M. earned $7.6 billion, nearly all of it from North America. That was 62 percent higher than the $4.7 billion it earned a year ago and more than G.M.'s previous record of $6.7 billion in 1997 (in today's dollars, the 1997 profit would be about $9.4 billion).
As a result, G.M.'s 47,500 eligible hourly workers will receive profit-sharing checks in March of up to $7,000, an all-time high.
So, to recap, General Motors was on the verge of collapse; President Obama took a gamble to prevent a catastrophe; the policy worked; and now GM is not only starting to thrive, it's sending out large profit-sharing checks to tens of thousands of American workers.
To put it mildly, this isn't what Romney expected. In 2009, Mr. "Let Detroit Go Bankrupt" was so certain Obama's policy would fail, he said Americans could "kiss the American automotive industry goodbye" if the administration's policy was implemented. Indeed, at the time, Romney called the White House plan "tragic" and "a very sad circumstance for this country." He wrote an April 2009 piece in which he said Obama's plan "would make GM the living dead."
I have to say, Zombie GM is looking pretty spry.
What's more, it's also worth noting that this is the first year in nearly a decade in which all of the Big 3 American automakers are profitable. This wouldn't have been possible were it not for the Obama administration's rescue policy.
Romney took a risk in 2009, betting that GM would collapse and Obama would get the blame. Now, the former governor seems to be stuck, spinning a convoluted tale -- Romney is trying to take credit for part of the president's policy, while condemning the other part -- that falls apart under scrutiny.
It's tempting to think, given the circumstances, that Romney should just avoid this subject altogether, but at this point, I'm not sure which issue would be better for him.
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Osama BIn Laden is dead and General Motors is alive
should be on t-shirts, bumper stickers and mugs available for purchase from the Obama campaign.
May I suggest
Osama BIn Laden is dead and General Motors thrives
Didn't Bush offer to help the auto industry, but only if they cut off the UAW or something?
Yup. Both Bush and Mitt saw the disaster first as an opportunity to crush the unions, and only after that as an area where the country needed government help. Party first, country second, always.
Those corporate persons are sure getting their moneys worth out of Mitt the dimwit.
Mitt apparently does not know about that news organizations actually keep recordings of his previous statements.
Btw... I saw TRMS executive producer Bill Wolff's appearance on The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell last night. His revelation that he was a varsity water polo player at Harvard really made my day. It was my jumping mechanical bug*!
* - a jumping mechanical bug was mentioned in a recent Bill Wolff internet address to TRMS viewers.
If Romney just swallowed and congratulated the President for his role in this success, it would humanize him and perhaps help in his unfavorable/favorable ratings. The base would crucify him for that, but then the radical base isn't voting for him anyway.
Can anyone tell what kind of car Mitt is driving in this commercial?
Good question. I'm surprised he's driving. He probably never drives anywhere anymore. Doesn't he now have federal secret service protection?
Anyway, if he does drive, I am sure it would be nothing less than a Mercedes.
Last evening, with the MA primary season about to kick off, I caught a Romney campaign commercial with him driving an old station wagon up Mount Washington. I guess he's hopping that if Scott Brown's pickup truck worked for him, driving an old beat up Whooptie is going to improve his image.
Time for Mitt to exit, stage left.
A few Factoids:
Obama has devastated the US economy by High Taxes and the Auto Bail out
The Auto Bail Out cost the US millions upon millions of jobs that will never be recovered
Mitt Romney has already won the Republican nomination
Mitt Romney was the best governor Massachusetts ever had (Ask people who live in Cummington, MA)
Planned parenthood does nothing except abortions
Obama's Proposed Cuts to defense will reduce our military capability to that of the Fiji islands
Allocating more money to fix roads and bridges and particularly high speed rail (i.e. the Transportation Bill) Will cost millions of jobs and devastate the economy
Definition of "Factoid": A lie that has been repeated in the press so often that it is generally regarded as if it actually were a fact.
So you are just spouting your Republican "factoids" is that right?
Jack ... J Brown is being snarky or sarcastic and trying to point out that these are lies told over and over again until the GOP base believes them to be true "factoids".
Unless I've misread it ...
@jackstraw....read the final paragraph of J browns post
Point Taken....I'll count to 10 next time : )
If you gave me billions of dollars I could post record profits, too! Go, Ford!
It's a good thing Romney and Bain Capital made money whether their portfolio companies prospered or crashed and burned, because he's not very good at predicting what will happen.
If anything is suffering from "Living Dead-itus", it has to be the Romney 2012 campaign.
And how much income tax did GM pay on this record $7.6 billion profit?
Every time I see the "Driving Mitt Romney" ad, I can't help but wonder if that is THE station wagon. Woof.
If GM had gone into bankrupcy, thousands of UAW workers, many of whom are slated to retire soon which will make way for a new generation of workers, would have been robbed of their pension. FACT!
Nothing better than the auto represents our country in the world of trade. This country was built on American autos. Attacking the US auto industry is unAmerican and a sacrilege.
If I didn't know better I would say Mitt is handing Obama the campaign on a platter. No comments necessary for Mitt Lately, just letting him speak for himself is all that is needed. Knock on wood....